


You're So Cute-icle

by joonohon



Series: Eren Week 2015 [4]
Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Asexual Relationship, Awkward Levi, DFAB Levi, Day 3, Day 3: Mother, Day Three: Mother, Eren Week, Eren Week 2015, Fluff, Genderfluid Eren Yeager, Hispanic Character, Hispanic Community, I haven't seen any nail salon AUs and I needed to fix that, Japanese Character, M/M, Miami, Nail Polish, Nail Salon AU, Pets, Supportive Carla, Trans Levi, dont even start with me, eren week: day 3, eren week: day three, i know its hella late, my poor kid
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-02-11
Updated: 2016-02-11
Packaged: 2018-05-19 15:33:23
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,958
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5972071
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/joonohon/pseuds/joonohon
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Levi is a simple man with simple pleasures. He likes ambient music, lemonade, and painting nails from nine to five every day of the week. He also likes the cute boy that comes in every Friday, always the last appointment, with a glimmer in his eyes and a blush on his cheeks. </p><p>A Nail Salon AU featuring Levi and the absolute trainwreck that is him trying to get with one Eren Yeager.</p>
            </blockquote>





	You're So Cute-icle

**Author's Note:**

  * For [WishingSebastianStanwasmyman](https://archiveofourown.org/users/WishingSebastianStanwasmyman/gifts).



> So I saw a distinct lack of nail salon AUs. As in there are none. So I wrote one myself. 
> 
> Note: this takes place in Miami, which I am familiar with. Hence why it takes place there. I used a lot of Hispanic lingo to match the setting, so here are some translations and extra info that you might want to read if you aren't familiar with the Spanish language/culture...
> 
> -"Hola" means Hello  
> -"¿Cojiste su color?" (pronounced co-hee-steh soo ko-lor) means Did you get your color?  
> -"Alicate" (pronounced ahl-ee-ka-teh) literally means pliers, but is used to refer to cuticle clippers  
> -"Piyejito" (pronounced pee-ye-hee-toe) literally means little skin, and is used to refer to lifted flaps of skin around the nail (the ones that hurt like a bitch? Yeah. Those)
> 
> -Miami is known for having an insane amount of Cubans. Hispanics are the majority here, and a lot of Cubans come here from Cuba (legally and illegally) and tend to stay here.  
> -Eren is Nicaraguan. Nicaragua is a country in Central America known for frequent and violent communist uprisings that have had various levels of success over the decades. This is why Eren's mother left Nicaragua. (I'm Nicaraguan too, and this will make sense in a chapter or two I promise lmao)  
> -The Dominican Republic is a country in the Caribbean. 
> 
> I think that's all for now. If there are are more questions related to this^, leave a comment and I'll add it in! Enjoy!
> 
> Follow/message me on tumblr: botanicalevi.tumblr.com

"-you sure you're ready for this? We can always come back another day." The bell above the salon door chimed, bringing with it a hushed conversation.

"No! I- I mean. I don't want to come back another day. Yes. I-" a lower voice answered. A deep breath. A quick exhale. "I'm ready."

Levi watched the mother and son duo talking to Hanji at the front desk from under his lashes. He could practically hear the encouraging smile on the woman's lips as he saw her comb her son's hair with her fingertips ever so gently. He pumped more lotion onto his hands, continuing to massage Rico's feet with even presses of his thumbs. She was his last appointment of the day, as was the usual every third Saturday, but the newcomers were walk-ins. Hanji loved giving him walk-ins. That bitch.

He finished rubbing at Rico's legs, nodding his thanks when she got off the chair and gave him a ten as a tip. Thank you, Rico. He smiled, humming serenely at the bill. She always tipped beautifully. He put it in his back pocket, draining the water from the chair and washing his hands. By the time he made it back to his station, the desk this time instead of the pedicure chair, there was already someone seated, waiting for him. 

The boy.

Now, it wasn't unheard of. It was just unusual. Especially in the predominantly Hispanic (and a tad bit conservative) area Levi happened to live in. He didn't even look gay. Not that Levi was one to talk. He gave Hanji a look over the boy's shoulder, and they giggled, shoulders shaking and quickly slapping a hand over their mouth. That bitch.

"Hola", he greeted, taking his seat across from the boy. He was already mentally preparing some stock Spanish responses. Language wasn't his forte. People weren't his forte. "¿Cojiste su color?", he asked, looking around the desk for a bottle of polish.

Teal eyes lifted to meet his. Holy fuck, those definitely weren't real. "I speak English, you know." He reached into his jean pocket anyways, pulling out a bright aqua. "Yeah, I picked a color. I brought my own, though."

Levi nodded, mortified, yet used to being corrected and having to switch languages. This sucked already. "Sorry, I just assume at this point. There's a lot of people here that don't speak English."

The boy laughed nervously, rubbing his neck. "Hah, yeah... One of the many perks of living in Miami." He smiled sheepishly. Levi blinked. The boy... Cute. Shit.

"Uh. Yeah. So..." Levi cleared his throat. "Do you want a pedicure, too, or just a manicure? Eyebrows?" He looked at the boy's face. Those were some thick brows. Very nice. Neat. Mm. He hoped to God that the boy wouldn't want them thinned.

The boy tilted his head for a moment, looking back to his mother and pointing at his feet in question. Adorable. She gave a nod from across the aisle where Annie was filing her nails. The boy smiled. He turned back to Levi, nodding. Adorable. Again. 

"Yes please. Just a mani-pedi, though." He shook his head. "I do my eyebrows myself." 

So polite, too. The only other thing that was going through Levi's mind was holy shit those are some fine brows, and he nodded dumbly before fumbling around in a drawer for a nail file. 

"Do you want them short or long?"

"Short, please."

"Round or square?"

"Round, please."

Levi nodded. He was soo polite. Internally sighing pleasantly, he grabbed the boy's hands, starting with the index finger. He filed the first nail, showing it to him when it was done. The boy nodded in approval, and Levi continued, filing each one until he had finished both hands. He buffed them carefully to avoid burning his skin, brushing away the powered nails off of the desk with a bamboo brush. He grabbed the boy's hands too, dusting between the fingers and over the dorsal side. They were soft with the exception of a few calluses at the top of his palms. He did his best to avoid that bright blue-green stare. He could feel his hands getting clammy.

Levi got up, leaving and coming back to the desk with a small, water-filled dish and wiping his hands on a towel on the way. He smeared lotion on the boy's cuticles, letting them soak in water before pushing them up and cutting them off gently with a cuticle clipper, or alicate, as his usual customers called it. Levi shook his head slowly. The Spanish lingo was getting to him. He wasn't even Hispanic. Those fuckers.

That didn't mean he didn't use it, though.

"Go wash your hands." He patted the boy's fingers, leaving back in his chair and pulling out his phone. The boy left towards the back, the sound of running water making itself known. 

Levi looked over, making sure the boy wasn't looking before staring unabashedly. He had some shame, after all. He was tall and dark, probably Dominican, with fluffy hair and a wide shoulder span. He was curvy though, and his thin waist sloped into thick, jean-clad thighs. 

His butt was pretty, too. All of him was pretty.

Here we fucking go, Levi thought, already dismissing those thoughts. He wasn't going down that road. Not today. 

The boy sat back down, and Levi grabbed his fingers, turning them and making sure there was no dead skin left. He clipped a few stray piyejitos, putting the alicate away in a drawer. He snorted, immediately regretting the noise. 

"What's wrong?" Levi looked up. The boy looked at him expectantly.

"Oh, uh." Levi flushed a bit, his neck turning pink. "I just realized that I have no idea what piyejito is in English." He let out a laugh. "All these Cubans are getting to me."

The boy smiled. "Yeah, I know what you mean. It means little skin. Piyejo means skin, and -ito is little. So. Yeah." he finished lamely. Levi nodded. 

"Makes sense." He was glad for his resting bitch face for once in his life, because he was sure the boy couldn't tell that he was actually screaming on the inside. Who the fuck started a conversation over their language incompetence?

He grabbed a little bottle with the word "BOND" written on it in marker. He shook it, eyeing the nail polish the boy had brought before stopping. "Wait, you want a regular manicure? Gel is only five dollars extra." 

The boy seemed confused. "Um. What's the difference?" 

He was too cute for his own good. Levi grabbed the aqua bottle. "Well, this is regular polish. It lasts a week or so at most, if you aren't extremely careful. Recommended for kids and people who don't use their hands much, but not recommended if you work with your hands a lot or want your money's worth." 

He put the bottle back and nodded towards the farthest wall, towards a shelf with polishes lined neatly in order of color. Block letters spelling "GEL" were mounted atop. "Gel is an extra five, but lasts a lot longer. You can't take it off with a cotton ball, either. Most people go three or four weeks without their nails chipping. So. In essence, regular isn't fucking worth it. Like, at all." He looked back to the boy, who giggled a bit at Levi's crass language. "You still want regular?" 

The boy eyed the shelf. His nose scrunched up in thought, cheeks wonderfully pink. "When I think about it, gel sounds great. But it's only my first manicure, so..." He shrugged. "I'll stick with regular for now. Maybe next time." 

Levi nodded. "Alright." He put the bond back and placed the boy's hands on a small towel. He checked his nails once more to make sure there was nothing on them, and shook the aqua polish bottle. He unscrewed the cap, daintily wiping excess polish off the little brush and back into the bottle. He grabbed the boy's hand and started with the index finger, painting one coat on each and doing the thumb last. He moved on to the next hand, and when he finished, placed the hand flat on the towel. 

"Ok, you need to wait a bit for them to dry now." Levi clicked on a little desk fan and angled it towards the boy's nails, blades spinning lazily. The boy nodded. 

A silence sat between them. Levi fidgeted nervously. The other was looking towards the other patrons in the salon. He was stiff, and his movements were jerky. 

"So," Levi started. The boy looked at him with wide eyes. "Where are you from? You don't look Cuban." There was an abundant Cuban population in Miami, since the island was so close and very generous with refugees. Levi tried rationalizing the question to himself, and it wasn't going so well. He wanted to crawl in a hole. Where are you from? Really? Fucking- Ugh.

The boy laughed softly. "Yeah, I stand out a bit, don't I?" He looked at his own arms, obviously indicating his skin. "I'm a bit darker than the average Hispanic here." Levi nodded. "I'm half Nica on my mom's side." 

Levi's eyebrows scrunched together. "Nica?" 

"Nicaraguan."

"Oh." Levi blushed, nodding absently. He could feel the other staring at him. Fuck Central Americans with their obscure countries and pretty boys.

"Well, this has to be the most diverse nail salon I've ever walked in to. A Nica mother and son, a Muslim receptionist, and an asian servicing them." His smile dropped. "Well. I'm guessing you're asian? Am I wrong?" 

Levi shook his head. "No, you're right. I'm half Japanese. My mom's German. You're ok, you didn't offend me or anything." The boy laughed stutteringly in relief. Levi started putting another layer of polish on the boy's nails. He was so precious. He didn't even know Levi, yet he was looking out for his feelings. Levi's chest swelled, and he was feeling a bit brave, now. "Where's your dad's side from?"

"My dad's family is Turkish, actually."

"Oh wow. That's different."

"Tell me about it." He sighed. 

The conversation ended there, and with it the last of Levi's bravery. There went his Weekly Stock Of Gryffindor Courage. Levi applied a clear top coat when the second coat of aqua dried. He tapped the desk, getting up and gesturing for the boy to follow. "Time for a pedi."

He led the boy to a large massage chair. The boy sat carefully, making sure to keep his hands from touching anything. He put his feet in the basin and Levi filled it with water. The jets turned on automatically, and the boy let out a small "ooh!" when the lights in the basin began flashing different colors. Levi smiled softly.

"Ok, I'm going to make the water hot now, you ready?" The boy nodded, toes scrunching in preparation. Levi turned the handle of the faucet to heat up the water. Steam curled lazily from the surface of the churning water. 

Levi grabbed the boy's foot gently, placing it on his thigh after covering it with a towel from the mini cabinet beside the stoop he was seated on. After filing the nails, he pumped lotion into his palm and rubbed it all over the foot. Placing it back in the water, he repeated the procedure on the other foot. He waited a few minutes, feeling the boy attentively watching him while Levi messed around on his phone aimlessly to seem occupied. Not that the boy needed to know that Levi was trying to look cool.

The boy gasped when Levi pulled out the foot file. Levi looked up at him. "What, you don't want me to use this?" 

The boy shook his head slowly, eyes wide and eyeing the foot file. "Is there anything... Less intimidating and kitchen utensil-esque? That thing looks like it's going to rip my foot to shreds."

Levi laughed. "As much as it looks like a damn cheese grater, it's not gonna kill you." He put it back in the cabinet and pulled out a pumice rock. "This is much softer. Here," he urged, holding it out to the boy. "feel it." 

The boy ran a tentative finger along the oval rock, perking up visibly when he felt how smooth it was. "Yeah, that's way better."

Levi nodded, grabbing one foot out of the water and patting it dry. He grabbed the pumice rock and started to scrub it against the boy's heel. His toes relaxed, having been curled up before. When Levi got to the arch, thought, the boy jolted.

"Ticklish?"

The boy stifled a giggle, face burning bright. "Extremely." 

Levi smirked. "I'll be nice and skip over the arch. It's smooth already, anyways." He moved on to the ball of the foot and toes, scraping at the dry and dead skin there to remove it. He did the same to the other foot, and removed the cuticles, too. He let the boy's feet rest in the water for a little while longer before drying them again and getting to painting them. 

Two coats of aqua and a clear coat later, the boy's toes were done. Levi grabbed two paper towels and twisted them, winding them between the boy's toes to prevent the polish from smearing. He patted the boy's feet and helped him out of the chair. He tried not to think about how nice the boy's hand felt in his. He could feel a blush creeping up his neck and behind his ears. The boy was on his feet, smiling softly and gripping Levi so gingerly, and he couldn't help but snatch his hand away in embarrassment. He cleared his throat, motioning for the boy to follow him to the front desk. This boy needed to leave and soon, before Levi said something to embarrass himself.

Hanji was somewhere in the back, so Levi rang up the purchase himself. He punched in the correct amount, swiping the boy's card (probably his mother's), and handing him a receipt to sign. His signature was messy, yet endearing. This was getting to be too much, Levi thought. He nodded, and just as he was about to mumble a thanks and walk back to his station to compose himself, the boy caught his attention.

"Um, excuse me? I was just." He stopped short when Levi looked back to him. "Uh." He flushed, soft pink dusting his cheeks. "Can I. Can I make an appointment?" 

Levi blinked. "Yeah. Yeah, uh." He rummaged through the desk drawer, pulling out a large planner and a pen. "What day do you wanna come in?"

"What days are you here?" 

Levi carefully kept his eyes trained on the little dates, June 7th, June 8th, June 9th, while his face burned. His brain was screaming. 

"I'm here everyday. Sundays I leave early, around three," he muttered. 

"So today is Saturday..." The boy paused. "Can I come two weeks from now? But on Friday instead of Saturday." 

"Time?"

"As late as possible." 

Levi's eyebrows furrowed. "Like, around closing time?" 

"Yeah, perfect!"

His eyes narrowed. He glanced up at the boy, who was grinning sheepishly. His fingers were tapping against the desk nervously. He was bouncing softly, probably shuffling his feet.

Levi smiled a bit. "You'll probably be the last appointment, you know." He flipped to two weeks from then, about to pencil the boy in. It was then that he stopped. How had he not realized that he had never asked the boy for his name?

"That's kind of the point." He seemed to understand what he had said, spluttering and rubbing his neck rapidly. "It's uh- I just don't like crowds, you know? There's. A lot of people here. Right now." 

Levi looked behind him. A total of three people, including the boy's mother, were being serviced. He turned back around, smirking. "Oh yeah, so many."

The boy blushed harder. 

Levi leaned his elbows on the desk; if he were to ever be brave and suave, he thought to himself, let it be now. "So, what's your name?"

The boy's eyes were bright. "Oh yeah, haha." He pulled his sweater tighter around himself. "It's Aaron. Aaron Jaeger." 

Aaron. It was an alright name, Levi thought. He wrote it down on the designated date, about to close the planner when the boy's hand slapped softly over his own. 

"No, no!" he said. He flushed again, his skin having already cooled down. "It's not Aaron with an A, it's E-r-e-n." 

Levi tilted his head and nodded, erasing his mistake and fixing it. Somehow, that was much more fitting. It was simple and sweet. "Well, I'll see you in two weeks, Eren." 

He nodded happily, smile tiny with shining eyes as he wiggled his fingers at Levi in goodbye when he walked out the salon a bit later with his mother. 

Levi went back to his station, brushing off any debris with the bamboo brush. His cheeks prickled, and he glanced up to see Hanji at the front desk with an impish grin on their lips. Their chin was resting on their intertwined hands, and their head dipped with a waggle of their eyebrows when Levi made eye contact. 

"So? Eren?" they mouthed, and Levi stared blankly before getting up and going to the back room, flipping them off and slipping his headphones in just as they started to cackle. 

When closing up later on, Levi organized the front desk and saw the planner, closed and to the side. Glancing behind him to make sure Hanji wasn't spying, he flipped to two weeks ahead, running a finger over Eren's name and his mother's phone number. He smiled a bit. He couldn't wait for Eren's appointment.


End file.
